Aristide Economopoulos/The Star-LedgerCory Booker, known for meticulously crafting his own image on Twitter and television, appears to have lost control of that message on Sunday.

A headshot of Cory Booker on one side, the GOP logo on the other.

Come again?

The day after Booker, a surrogate for the Obama re-election team, went on NBC's "Meet the Press" and let the nation know he was nauseated by one of the president's campaign tactics against Mitt Romney, the Democratic mayor of Newark found himself embroiled in a national conversation. What did he mean? Was this a gaffe or calculated? How big a headache did he cause his party?

Booker, known for meticulously crafting his own image on Twitter and television, appears to have lost control of that message.

Or did he?

Democrats are on defense, but some politicians think Booker may have scored points with those looking for people willing to criticize their own party, while others in the party acknowledge his words will play well in the private equity world.

"I think that what he did is in his interest," Newark Councilman Ras Baraka said. "The press is going to go away, they will forget this comment. But the people who finance campaigns, they will remember."

Booker’s controversial comments came on "Meet The Press" Sunday when he compared the president’s attack on private equity to attacks on the Rev. Jeremiah Wright. "This kind of stuff is nauseating to me on both sides. It’s nauseating to the American public. Enough is enough. Stop attacking private equity, stop attacking Jeremiah Wright. This stuff has got to stop because what it does is it undermines, to me, what this country should be focused on. It’s a distraction from the real issues."

The Romney campaign today put out a web ad, starring Booker.

The Republican National Committee started a petition with Booker’s stern expression on top of a letter that asks you to stand with Cory Booker and denounce Obama’s attack on free enterprise.

Search for Cory Booker on Twitter — the mayor’s preferred method of communication — and the first result after his official account is from the RNC: "Stand up for job creators and free enterprise — sign the GOP petition today!"

Booker tried damage-control Sunday night, posting a four-minute YouTube video in which he said the President "more than deserves re-election." Attacks on Romney’s record as a job creator were legitimate, he said, but Booker also doubled-down on his previous comments, saying he was frustrated with the tone of both campaigns.

"I used the word nauseating on 'Meet the Press' because that's really how I feel," Booker said. "I get very upset when I see such a level of dialogue that calls to our lowest common denominators."

Booker, who declined to talk to the Star-Ledger, went on MSNBC Monday night to complain Republicans have used him for their own cynical gains - the very thing he was criticizing on Sunday.

"Obviously I … did not land the points I was trying to make," Booker said. "I think I conflated the attacks they are making with Jeremiah Wright and those can’t even be equated. They are plucking sound bites out of that interview … to use that for their own purposes."

This is not the first time Booker has bucked the Democratic party.

In July 2010, he supported Gov. Chris Christie’s property tax cap to the chagrin of state Democrats. Senate President Steve Sweeney chided the mayor at the time. In February 2011, Booker came out for the Opportunity Scholarship Act, designed to provide vouchers for students in failing schools. Assemblywoman Bonnie Watson-Coleman (D-Mercer) said the bill undermined public education.

today, went on MSNBC last night to complain the Republicans have used him for their own cynical gains — the very thing he was critizing on Sunday.

President Obama declined to chastise Booker yesterday, saying he was "an outstanding mayor," but added "this issue is not a distraction."

Despite the president’s praise, it seems the Booker brand among Democrats was a bit bruised. Campaign strategist David Axelrod told MSNBC yesterday Booker "was just wrong."

Assemblyman John Wisniewski, chairman of the state Democratic Party, said he did not believe Booker was trying to undercut his own party, but said the mayor failed to grasp the significance of the private equity issue.

"Do I think he was being disloyal? No," Wisniewski said. "I think the mayor misses the point of the ad. It’s not about whether private equity is good or bad, it’s how Mitt Romney, at Bain Capital, utilized his position at a private equity firm to choose to create wealth as opposed to jobs. And it is a real issue, when you have the Romney campaign talking about job creation."

That’s in line with the Obama talking points and Booker echoed that theme in his YouTube video.

"Mitt Romney has made his business record a centerpiece of his campaign," Booker said. "He’s talked about himself as a job creator, and therefore it is reasonable — and in fact, I encourage it — for the Obama campaign to examine that record and to discuss it."

Dismissing this as a gaffe might be giving Booker too little credit, said several observers yesterday.

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"I don’t think it was a gaffe at all," said Bob Grady, managing director at Cheyenne Capital and chairman of the New Jersey State Investment Council, which oversees the state’s $73 billion pension system. "I agree with Mayor Booker that the presidential campaign should be about big things, and I was surprised that the Obama campaign came down so hard on him."

And though it may be tempting to wonder what will happen the next time Booker asks for federal funds, it is worth remembering the role private equity plays in financing businesses in Newark and New Jersey.

The Private Equity Growth Capital Council, an industry lobbyist, noted that the state received investments of more than $3 billion in private equity last year. Nearly half that amount — the 16th most in the country — went to Newark and its surrounding communities, the council said.

"Cory Booker’s comments on ‘Meet the Press’ yesterday revealed what is likely becoming a growing concern for elected officials in states across the country, who understand the critical role that private equity plays in their state and local economies," said Ken Spain, vice president of public policy and communications at the Private Equity Growth Capital Council. "Hundreds of billions of dollars have been invested in tens of thousands businesses in all 50 states, driving growth, strengthening companies and providing financial security for millions of Americans. It is no wonder Mayor Booker finds these attacks ‘nauseating,’ "

Star-Ledger staff writers David Giambusso and Steve Strunsky contributed to this report.